Down by the Bay
by Foxy Thief
Summary: In Thornton County, it's a pretty common belief that the bay on the east side of town in haunted, and so it's off limits. Pretty simple, right? Well, not when Arthur Kirkland moves to town. You see, Arthur's never really been good at listening to others. Or keeping his promises. Let's just say, things start escalating. Quickly.


There's an old legend down in Thornton County that states that anyone who goes down to the bay on the east side of town is doomed for there is something that lives in the water that will gladly pick off anyone it could get it's hands on. Assuming it had hands of course. With this kind of story floating around, no one went down to the bay, mostly because they were told not to.

Of course, Arthur Kirkland never was one to listen to what others told him.

"Alright sweetie, I have to go to work. Dinner's in the fridge and Mrs. Jones is right next door if you need anything, alright? Oh, and remember, the bay is _off limits_." Ms. Kirkland rushed out, quickly kissing Arthur on the forehead before she headed for the door.

"Yes mom. I promise." Arthur promised, never lifting his eyes from the book in his lap.

"Alright, I'll be back at 11!" She announced, rushing out the door, jumping in her car, and quickly driving off.

As soon as he heard the car disappear, he smirked, jumping out of his seat and rushing to the window, making sure his mother was really gone before rushing out the backdoor, making sure to lock the door, and grabbing his bike.

Arthur, as said before, sucked at listening to others. Every normal resident of Thornton County knew you didn't go down to the bay. It was as simple a fact as the sky is blue and the grass is green.

Arthur however, wasn't a normal Thornton County resident. He had only moved there three years prior, after his father had been killed in a plane crash, and had been regarded as an outsider ever since. He didn't act like everyone else. He was loud, snarky, and utterly unwilling to stay in the presence of those he disliked. Teachers and Principals had tried to talk to his mother about it, but it was always brushed off as him still grieving over his father's death. Of course he _had_ been upset when his father died, but he realized that he couldn't spend his entire life grieving, so he worried more for himself and his mother.

Jumping on his bike, he pedaled, keeping to the side roads and making sure to keep an eye out for anyone else. Going to the bay was a death wish by itself, going at night was just plain suicide.

As he got closer, his heart raced, worrying over whether the stories were true or not.

By the time he got there, he was sweating, and he had just barely convinced himself that there was absolutely nothing interesting here at the bay and that everyone else was just a bunch of crazy, gullible, fools.

Finally satisfied with his pep talk, he pulled the kickstand on the bike out, making sure it wouldn't fall over before walking through the small bit of woods that had grown between the road and the bay.

Once there, he froze.

Stretching out into the water, was a dock, hitting the curve of the water in the exact spot the moon did, causing the water and surrounding area to glint mystically in the darkness.

Of course, there was also a naked man sitting at the edge of the dock.

Unknowingly, he gasped, causing the man to turn to him, smiling almost ferally at the sight of the 15 year old boy.

"Come here boy." The man spoke, his voice seeming to flow into Arthur's brain, causing him to nearly trip over his feet in an effort to quickly get to the man's side.

Once there, the man gripped his jaw, examining his face for a moment before switching to a nicer smile.

"Sit down." He spoke, and once again, Arthur hurried to obey the man.

"What's your name young one?" The man asked, running his fingers with _strangely_ sharp nails through Arthur's hair.

Arthur's tongue refused to cooperate with him, so he was stuck simply opening and closing his mouth several times.

"Come on, out with it."

"A-Arthur. Arthur Kirkland."

"Arthur~" the man purred. "Don't you know how dangerous the bay is?"

Pausing, Arthur looked up at the man's_ mesmerizing_ purple eyes.

"It can't be that dangerous if you're here." Arthur replied without thinking.

Chuckling, the man turned to look fully at Arthur and Arthur noticed that the man's teeth were_ incredibly_ sharp.

And in that moment, it dawned on Arthur.

The hypnotic voice. The sharp nails. The _purple_ eyes.

Scrambling away, Arthur stared at the man in fear.

"Ahh, so you're not as stupid as the others." The man chuckled, turning to look at Arthur.

"W-What are you?"

"How rude, not even asking my name first." The man (if that was even still applicable) pouted.

"Y-Your name?"

"Ivan, thank you for asking darling."

Arthur stared at the smiling man for just a moment longer before taking a step back and running back through the trees where his bike sat. Clumsily fumbling with the kickstand, Arthur finally pushed off and biked back home,constantly looking behind him and only slowing his pedaling when his lungs started to burn.

Slowing, Arthur panted, legs burning and eyes flicking between the trees in search of the strange man.

_Ivan. He said his name was Ivan. And he called me darling._

Arthur paused for a moment to close his eyes and take a deep breath before starting his trek back home.

_No more going to the bay. I promise._

But Arthur was never very good with keeping his promises now was he?


End file.
